Relentless wind and splattering rain, the streets wet black and covered in puddles of wind-blown, white petals freshly fallen from bright blossoms: today's weather is thick for tea. The session is prefaced by an especially quality time of teaching Tai Chi and a very present and connecting, two hour conversation with my father that leaves me open and grateful.

I pour winter 2012 Alishan tea in a newly received 120ml Petr Novak kyusu and accompanying cups. After days of more oxidized wulongs it's a nice return to the bright golden, rich Alishan liquor, like bringing cups of warm, soothing sunlight into the rainy day tea room. Really nice rounds of quiet process and reflection; for whatever reason, the rounds really unfold smoothly with depth and flavor.

Drinking Postcard Teas Oriental Beauty that I started brewing yesterday. It took a while for this tea to open up, a long while even, but now it gives concentrated dark juicy brews with a touch of orange peel zest. I've had a tough time being impressed with this tea every other time but I think I've just not given it enough time and patience to unfold before.

2013 Song Cultivar Dancong from Tea Hong. A high grade tea with strong overtones of citrus and a huge huigan filling the mouth. Good body leaving the mouth wet, viscuous, and fresh feeling. Many brews. This is not the overly fruity type of Dancong. Very good and interesting tea.

Wuling and Yushan oolongs both from zen8tea. Excellent teas when brewed in the correct Yixing (or directly to porcelain if you don't want to stuff up a delicate green oolong).

I never get tired of Taiwanese alpine teas. Teahome also stocks quality Dayuling tea which I still have some left. Origin Tea's alishan zhang shu hu is another oolong I have been enjoying lately and my favourite of this vendor, a knockout tea.

A friend comes by to sit for tea today: we pour 2012 Winter Alishan and a quality Oriental Beauty tea in the mid afternoon quiet, slant sunlight warm on the wall, breezes in the chimes, the scent of blossoms through the window, and discuss the value of intentional presence and self-honesty. He leaves with tea; I remain, my sense of gratitude for tea as a bridge renewed.

Still enjoying some traditional roast TGY from Norbu today, leaves started yesterday in my treebark oolong pot from Petr Norbu. I keep thinking, "the leaves must be done now", but then there is enough flavor to send me back for another infusion, and another....and I keep enjoying them from my faithful Ginkgo 'granite' Yunomi.

Yesterday I create a setting for my wife and I on the tea deck in our yard. The air is thick with the blossoming pear trees and moist earth scents, post rain. The cherry tree buds are yet unopened and the Wisteria canopy above the tea deck prepares to bloom into long combs of blue-purple flowers. Breezes busy about the chimes ripple across the amber, tea-filled cups and taunt the burner's flame beneath the tea kettle. We brew a 20 year aged wulong from Taiwan Tea Crafts and the last of a Red Blossom Dong Ding Charcoal Roast tea.

Today I pour a newly opened bag of Taiwan wulong tea gifted to us from a friend whom recently returned from Taiwan. It's always fun receiving tea this way (a bit of tea roulette). She buys two teas for us. I open the larger quantity, cheaper tea curious to see what it will be. It turns out to be a quality, tasty, uniquely floral sweet tea that I brew in a 130ml Petr Novak shib and matching cup. The session is immensely rich and a deep stillness and presence of focus and breath pervades the time...I emerge cleansed. Towards the end I read Thomas Berry's essay "Loneliness and Presence" from his book Evening Thoughts. The essay's lucidity is a beautiful companion to the pour.